Tag Archives: Childrens Book

LGBT Storylines Make Waterstones Children’s Book Prize Shortlist

Two of the stand-out novels on the shortlist for the older fiction category of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize focus on issues relating to sexual orientation and gender.

Jandy Nelson’s I’ll Give You the Sun is the story of a brother and sister driven apart by tragedy but brought back together as they both fall for boys at the same time. Nelson’s second novel has been optioned by Warner Bros to be adapted into a film.

The second book, The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson follows two teenagers struggling with their gender identities and finding it hard to keep the secret at school.

The organisers pointed out that although fantasy and adventure books were still present, they did not dominate the list.

James Daunt, managing director of Waterstones, said:

It doesn’t surprise me that fiction should reflect the issues and concerns of society as a whole. Great works of fiction reflect those issues that are of primary concern in a society. LGBT rights are something teenage children are informed about and can talk about sensitively – that wasn’t the case at the time of my childhood. The whole quality of understanding and debate has moved on dramatically, and we’re the better for that.”

Juno Dawson, a children’s author who has herself recently transitioned, also hailed the rising profile of LGBT-themed youth fiction. She told The Independent:

The floodgates are open and I don’t think they will close again. I hope we will see diversity as standard in children’s books. Ten years ago, authors may have been wary that including diverse characters would affect sales, but I don’t think that’s true anymore.”

She added:

These books are now getting their moment in the spotlight. We must be careful that diversity doesn’t become a fad in the way vampires were a fad with publishers getting bored and moving on.”

In total, 18 books have been shortlisted for the 2016 Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, split into the categories of older fiction, younger fiction and illustrated books.

New Children’s Book Simply Normalize Same-Sex Relationships For Children – ‘Rumplepimple’

Rumplepimple is a new book for children, which weaves in same-sex relationships into the storyline in a very subtle way.

Written by Suzanne DeWitt Hall and illustrated by Kevin Scott Gierman, this book is the story of a dog named Rumplepimple who runs out of a car and into a grocery store to help a little girl who is being teased by an older boy.

Like much of Hall’s work, Rumplepimple tells the story of being misunderstood by those who love you most when you’re trying to do the right thing.

The queer element comes from Rumplepimple’s caretakers – who are a same-sex couple. The story also mirrors the reality of Hall’s own life.

Rumplepimple-01 Rumplepimple-02

Hall told The Huffington Post.

I think the time has arrived when there is less need for books that explain same-sex parents and more need for books which simply feature characters who happen to have them. That’s the way things get normalized in literature over time. After all, we no longer need a book titled Teacher, Teacher: Why is Sammy’s Skin That Color?”

 

Marlene, Marlene, Queen of Mean – Jane Lynch’s New Childrens Book

Glee star Jane Lynch takes a look at bullying head-on in her first picture book titled ‘Marlene, Marlene, Queen of Mean.’

In the story, Marlene is the self-appointed queen of the playground, the sidewalk, and the school. She is small but mighty . . . intimidating! Known for her cruel ways, the little Queen of Mean has kids cowering in fear-until big Freddy stands up to her and says what everyone has been too fearful to say.

In Seussian rhyme, actress Jane Lynch, clinical psychologist Lara Embry, and former children’s book editor A. E. Mikesell gently and comically depict the undoing of a bully and her efforts to reform. Tricia Tusa’s charming illustrations make the story an even more accessible conversation starter for all ages.

The book will be available on September 23, 2014.